It's raining, it's pouring, I feel like snoring! Actually I think a rainy day is a great time to read a book, don't you? Ava, I'm glad you like Skeletons Don't Play Tubas. Elly, I hope you'll enjoy The Worst Name in Third Grade. Annette, I think you have a cool name! I knew a really nice girl named Annette when I was growing up. A big shout out to Vanessa, Kenterias, Annette, Tyler, Kimburley, Kaylee, Sausdy, Sanya, Michel, and Conner. I'm so glad you like the Bailey School Kids books. Shannen, did you know Ghosts Don't Eat Potato Chips was the hardest Bailey School Kids book to write? It took us two years! Colleen, Mrs. Jeepers brooch makes people behave. Aren't you glad your teacher doesn't have one? Riley, ask your local bookstore to order Frighting Like Cats and Dogs or check your local library. Rima, Isabella, and Victoria it took me several years to write Whistler's Hollow. I've been an author since 1988. It was nice meeting you guys. You have a great school. Alexis, good luck with your book report on Mummies Don't Coach Softball. Sahiti, of course I love to read and write, but I also like scrapbooking and playing tennis. Caroline, I think it's cool that we have the same birthday, May 18th. Hello Crockett Bears, you had some great questions. Yes, I must admit sometimes it is hard to be a writer. There has been some talk of making a Bailey School Kids movie. I think that would be cool. I get ideas from everywhere, even schools that I visit. Madeline had a good idea-perhaps another mermaid book. Shea, many of my books have been published by Scholastic, but my new series is with Tor. Maria and Malick, I'm fine. How are you? Kara, I look forward to meeting you on April 17th. Eric, I'm glad you liked Mrs. Jeepers and the Secret Cave. Many of the ideas for that book came from Mammoth Cave in Kentucky, which is where I'm from. It's the longest cave system in the world. Shea, greetings earthling. Allison, I went to Western Kentucky University. Emily, I'm glad you liked Leprechauns Don't Play Basketball. Jhguy, Vivian, and Kory, you guys rock. And so does everyone who guessed our dragon's name. (He's allergic to turkberries and sneezes alot. It's very bad when a dragon sneezes. You never know what's going to come out-dragon snot or fire!) Taylor, Rhys, Gabby, Madelynn, Drew, Trevor, Haley, Sam, Agust, Sophie, Wren, Jay, Rylie, Tyler, Cameron, Eric, Mark, Arya, and Jamie had amazing guesses. But we named our dragon something different . . . very different! You can find out soon when the first two books come out . . . This Side of Magic and The Other Side of Magic. (Actually, I'll let you know next week, so if you want to guess again, go ahead!) Don't forget to play a silly April Fool's joke on Wednesday. ttyl, Debbie

Saturday March 21, 2009

Happy Spring! It's so pretty here today I went for a nice walk with Shadow. (The doctor said she needs to loose weight, so I'm walking her as much as I can). Here she is standing on my desk. Hey Vivian the great I would love to visit your school in Las Vegas. Medaya, It'd be nice to meet you too. Ask your teachers to check out my author visit page to see if it might work out. If not, we'll just write each other here. Victoria, I have lots of favorites, but Skeletons Don't Play Tubas is definitely one. Jamie, I have never kissed the Blarney Stone, but I look forward to it! Ashna, Rosy would be a funny name for a dragon. Garett, excellent guess. Stay cool and not too stinky.brb, Debbie

Monday March 16, 2009

Happy Saint Patricks Day to everyone! May the luck of the Irish be with you. I personally have never kissed the Blarney stone or been to Ireland, but I'd like to some day. If you haven't been either, get a taste of the Irish in Leprechauns Don't Play Basketball and Leprechauns Don't Play Fetch? Did you know that Leprechauns and Vampires are bitter enemies? It's true, Marcia and I found out when we were writing those books. Congratulations to Shivangi, Elizabeth, and Mariah for your story writing. I wish you the best luck. Brittany, I read and write alot to try to write better. Also, going to workshops or conferences can be very helpful. Birney, I'm glad you liked the writer's workshop I did at your school. All you writers out there, please check out my writing page for some useful tips. There's a podcast first, but if you scroll down there's lots of ways to get inspired. Jamie, thanks for your funny idea. Mrs. Snotgrass from The Worst Name in Third Grade is actually a real name, just like Eddie, Melody, Howie, and Liza. I thought they'd be great names for my made-up characters. A big St. Patrick's Day greeting to Sarai, Manpreet, Mckenzie, Mckenzi, and Angelo! Adam, I am fine. How are you? Sanya, the idea for the Bailey School Kids books came from a bad day at school where we thought if we turned into monster teachers all the kids would mind us! Emily, I live in Pennsylvania near Philadelphia and my birthday is May 18th. Allison, I'm glad you liked Trolls Don't Ride Rollercoasters. I am actually a chicken about rollercoasters, how about you? Ibrahim, one of my favorite books is Skeletons Don't Play Tubas. Vivian the Great, my favorite color is blue and I love to read and be with my family. Medaya, yes I remember Frankie. Tell him I said hello. I have gotten ideas from my family, but I've never written a book just about them. I got the idea for Giants Don't Go Snowboarding from my snowboarding kids! I think I do believe in ghosts, do you? gtg, Debbie

Sunday March 8, 2009

Wow, the weather was so nice here that my husband took me for a long motorcyle ride yesterday. I felt like I was flying! I also took my three dogs for a long walk. They sniffed and peed on everything they could! Sunny greetings to Druscilla, Marlee, Sanya, Megan, Danielle, Jamie, Nupur, and Jlanee. Kamal, I'm so glad you liked Snow Monsters Do Drink Hot Chocolate. Molly, I'm sure you understand why I can't give you my daughter's email online. It is not a safe thing to do. After all, there are a lot of crazy people out there in Internet land! Dhwani and Kaviik, my new series is called Keyholders. It comes out in May. Here's the logo for the first book. Haley, my very first book was Vampires Don't Wear Polka Dots. I was 27 when I wrote it with Marcia Jones. Monika and Rachel, I can't wait to hear your podcast about me. How fun! Reyna, Michaela, and Gabriella, I have lots of favorite books. Slime Wars, Ghouls Don't Scoop Ice Cream, Whistler's Hollow, Skeletons Don't Play Tubas, Swamp Monster in Third Grade, and The Worst Name in Third Grade are all favorites, along with many more! Some people have told me that Ghosts Don't Eat Potato Chips was the scariest one. You'll have to let me know what you think. The neat thing about writing is that anything can happen in a story. Akansha, I'm so glad you liked Angels Don't Know Karate and the Ghostville series. Aashika, the skydiving book is with a publisher now. I hope it will get published. It is called Almost Normal. Arjun, the book Becky and I wrote together is with a different publisher. I hope it gets published too! (Nicole, the movie I wrote is with a Hollywood agent right now, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed. It's called Princess Grace.) I'm not a teacher now, unless you count the times I visit schools to talk about reading and writing. Nikki, kids can get books and stories published. There is a book called Children's Writer's and Illustrators Market Guide. Ask for it at your local library or bookstore. In the back of it, there are places where kids can get stories published. Good luck! Nikki, Martina, and Ahan might also like to check out my writing page for more writing advice. Ashwin, I do like writing because you can make anything happen in a story. Megan, I get ideas from everywhere-even the newspaper. It takes different amounts of time to write a story, from two hours to eight years! Eight years is how long it took me to write Cherokee Sister. Hi, I will probably not write a sequel to Cherokee Sister. That book meant a lot to me (since I am part Cherokee) and I'm not sure I could write another, although many kids have asked. Emily, I think a princess book would be great fun to write. Jackie, I've written about 147 books. Sometimes it's hard and sometimes it easy. James, what a cool idea about Mrs. Jeepers' first name! Vivian the Great, I do like basketball. After all, I grew up in Kentucky and basketball is tops there. I even played on a team in Middle School. Good luck to you as you try out. Maybe Leprechauns Don't Play Basketball will inspire you. Ashlynn, you sound like a fabulous reader. I'm glad you liked Mrs. Jeepers on Vampire Island. Mary, I think it's fun being an author most of the time. Sometimes I do get discouraged when I write a story that my editor doesn't like, but every job has good things and bad things I guess. Thank you all so much for writing. I hope you have a blessed and happy week, Debbie

Saturday February 28, 2009

Look out New Jersey! I'm coming to visit you next week. Hope we'll have a good time. Callie, my first book came out in 1990. It was Vampires Don't Wear Polka Dots. It had a different cover when it first came out though. Which one do you like better, the newest one on the left, or the first one? Sharlon, I'm fine. How are you? Questavia, it would be nice to meet you too. Danielle and Evelia, you can send your letters to me in care of Scholastic 557 Broadway NY, NY 10012. Kane, thanks for your funny idea! Whitney, I've written a few horse books: Ghosts Don't Ride Wild Horses and Unicorns Don't Give Sleigh Rides (which also has a new cover). Vivian The Great, I was born in 1959, so this year I will have a special birthday. I do love writing. Alexis, I hope you'll check out my tips on writing in the Swamp Club writing page. Writing is not like other forms of fame, most of the time you can be just a regular person, so don't let that worry you. Dayra, good luck on your own writing. Evan, thanks for writing to me. I have won a few awards, but the best awards are letters like yours. Thanks and happy March, Debbie